Steel_Wind

The encouraging thing is this is not the only "thank you" thread. There are dozens of them. Despite some complaints and criticisms and yes, some nattering, the presence of so many spontaneous "thank you" threads speaks rather well of the fans' reaction to the game.

To Feargus et al: No fanboi gushing, no undeserved praise, no significant complaints. I'm 12 hours in and this is the best single player CRPG I've played in a dozen years. It's also, imo, the best game you've ever made. If your Pathfinder licensed game is based on the Unity engine? I'd be very happy. Thanks for making all of this fun again. .Robert

If you are a Republican, merging with Canada is at the absolute top of your list of "things never to do". There are 35 million of us, Even assuming Quebec goes its separate way (and they would), that's still 28 million or so new citizens. 12% of the votes in the House of Reps shift. You add another 12 or 14 senators. The electoral college tilts accordingly. And except for a handful from Alberta, every single one of them seats and electoral college votes - for the next fifty years, will be a Democrat. And a liberal left-wing democrat at that by American standards. The "liberal" line isn't a curse up here - in fact - it's pretty much required to get elected. Canadians make Massachussets look pretty conservative. Given the rest of the balance of power in the United States, you'd pretty much have Democrats in power for the vast majority of the next fifty years. I'm guessing that ends the 54-40 or Fight and the Merge with Canada Movement real fast. More to the point? We'd never, ever, go for it.

John asked me to jump in here and give some advice if I can. Tips for writing and indie CRPG: 0. What is the goal of the game you are writing? For fun, profit, or experience to get in the game industry? 1. Identify your platform, tools, and resources you have to work with. Be realistic. Most indie developers do not have a lot of resources to work with, and that is okay as long as you are prepared for that. 2. What can you do, and who do you need to help with the rest? If you are not a programmer, you will probably need one or need to learn how to program. If you are not a designer, you will need to find one or work on becoming one. If you are not an artist, you may need to find one. You need to develop your skill set, whatever that may be. 3. Keep your goals realisitc. The best you can probably hope for is 1 to 3 like-minded individuals who will be willing to help in thier free-time. You will not be able to create World of Warcraft of Baldur's Gate with 3 people. You can however still create a game rich on content and creativity. 4. People willing to help you...well, your best bet is your own friends. I was lucky enough to have friends that were like-minded and very talent artists and programmers. If for whatever reason your friends can't or aren't interested in helping you, there are numerous indie game developer forums out there where you may find people willing to help. 5. I can't stress this enough, keep your goals realistic. Depending on the size of your game you want to make, it may take 6 months to 2 years working on your free-time to make. You will still have family, friends, and a life to lead outside of this, so plan accordingly, and be realistic. 6. Finally, the best alternative may be to just get an involved witha n already exisiting indie game that is looking for help. It might be a better way to get your feet wet and to learn more about it. I know this are kind of vague, but I can answer more specific questions if you have them. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Recruiting and motivating people to participate in an Indie volunteer project, or at least one that begins as volunteer gig with the hope of profit at some vague and uncertain point, is a skillset all on its own. I assembled a team that at its height was 40 people (30 is now the average). A few of them were ultimately senior industry professionals. I did it , with ZERO contacts for a cheque that ends in a whole lot of zeroes - and started with them too. The majority of them work over 40 hours a week - some 60 hours a week(!!) - on our project. Yup. That hard. It is possible, it is simply extremely unlikely. But unlikely != impossible. What do you need? 1. Credibility. 2. Strong Vision. If you cannot sell them on the idea, how ever do you think you can pitch your game? 3. One Talented Guy. That's all you need to start. One Talented Guy. It generally has to be someone who is talented visually or with music, as code is too ephemeral to pitch to someone initially when recruiting. People need to see that there is talent there already. They need something tangible in which to believe. Talent attracts talent. The first guy is far and away the hardest. It gets easier with every recruit afterwards until at some point you realize you can "borg" very efficiently. 4. Single minded unwavering, *unreasonable* dedication. You have to be able to believe in what you are doing in the face of the plainly obvious conclusion that it is not "realistic". 5. Obsessive honesty. To lead a team - you need to have these people to be able to trust you. Absolutely and without question. That is never given - it is earned over months and years. It is lost in seconds. Once you lose it - it's over. Don't betray your guys on anything. Ever. 6. A Shared dream. This is your budget. Spend it wisely. 7. Never, ever, stop recruiting. 8. Go to where the developers and wannabes are: IGDA chapters, Game forums, 3d schools, university and college C.S. faculties. Learn the lay of the land. See who is who - and who knows who. Network and recruit in multiple areas. 9. Remember that you are supposed to be having fun. Remember this most especially when the fun starts slipping away and it ends up being a whole lot of UNfun work. Remind your guys too.

You are absolutely right Nissa. Moreoever, the problem and tone on the Obsidian forums is not set by those "with just a few posts" - its set by thoese with hundreds - several of whom have been banned from the BioWare forums permanently. Until this place gets a good dose of forum "Naziism" and a lot less of those who do little but spew negativity under the guise of "freedom of expression", this place will never be able to meaningfully contiribute to building the Neverwinter Nights community. The good news is - this has been mentioned to Obsidian through many channels. They are aware of the problem and change, mes amis, is coming.